83-year-old sentenced for killing roommate, 94

Oct. 26, 2012

Updated Aug. 21, 2013 1:17 p.m.

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William McDougall, 83, and his attorney Rudy Loewenstein listen as Orange County Superior Court Judge Thomas M. Goethals passes sentence of life probation in court Friday morning in Santa Ana. McDougall admitted to Orange County prosecutors that two years ago he bludgeoned a 94-year-old man to death in a Laguna Woods rehabilitation center. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Deputy District Attorney Ebrahim Baytieh speaks before Orange County Superior Court Judge Thomas M. Goethals before he hands down William McDougall's sentence. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

William McDougall, 83, and his attorney Rudy Loewenstein listen as Orange County Superior Court Judge Thomas M. Goethals passes sentence of life probation in court Friday morning in Santa Ana. McDougall admitted to Orange County prosecutors that two years ago he bludgeoned a 94-year-old man to death in a Laguna Woods rehabilitation center.KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Remarking that justice in this case is imperfect, Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals suspended the sentence of 16 years in state prison for William Leo McDougall, who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in August in a negotiated settlement with prosecutors.

McDougall admitted to taking a wooden rod from a closet and striking Manh Van Nguyen multiple times in the head when both were recovering in 2010 from hip surgery in a room at Palm Terrace Healthcare Center in Laguna Woods.

The victim, a Vietnamese immigrant who could barely speak, was asleep when McDougall thought the victim was singing in his native tongue, according to Deputy District Attorney Ebrahim Baytieh.

Before the incident, McDougall, who sat in a wheelchair at the defense table Friday, had no record of violence.

McDougall softly answered yes to the judge's questions at the dramatic hearing during which one of the victim's sons labeled his actions a hate crime – a description with which the judge and the prosecutor disagreed.

"I do not find evidence to support that," said Goethals, pausing briefly several times as he made his remarks, saying he was selecting a sentence from the two choices before him – 16 years in prison or lifetime probation – and with some reluctance adopting the recommendation of the prosecutor.

This was a case, the judge said, that taxed the ability of the criminal justice system to administer justice.

"Where does justice lie here? And that's not an easy question to answer," Goethals said. "This case involves almost a freakish set of events. ... This is an extraordinarily unusual scenario."

The victim was blameless, his death unwarranted, and McDougall's action was an "act of evil," the judge said. Ultimately, a sentence is not just a reflection of the value of a lost life, Goethals said.

Baytieh told the judge he apologizes for any pain caused to Nguyen's family because of his recommendation of probation as a sentence.

When making the sentencing recommendation, the prosecutor considered the nature of the crime, the impact to and wishes of the victim's family, and the defendant's lack of criminal record, advanced age and medical condition.

"If my job was to make a call on the value of the life of the victim, then it is an easy call," said the prosecutor, adding he examined the circumstances surrounding the incident closely.

"If I had probable cause to believe the motivation was racial, I'd not be making this recommendation," Baytieh said. There's "absolutely no evidence to conclude this was racially motivated."

Nguyen's family members made victim impact statements to the court.

No matter how the circumstances are characterized, they said, their loved one was "mercilessly killed."

"It was cold-blooded murder and nobody can deny that," Nguyen's oldest son, Neil Nguyen told the court, saying his family's life has been "shattered forever."

After the sentencing, the victim's other son, Don Nguyen of Diamond Bar, disagreed with the sentence.

"Justice is not served for our dad and our families. We don't see any justice," he said. If his father had killed McDougall in the same way, would the outcome have been the same? Don Nguyen asked.

Defense attorney Rudolph Loewenstein said he was pleased with the outcome for what he called a "horrendous situation."

"Mr. McDougall and his family have nothing but remorse and empathy for Mr. Nguyen," he said.

According to prosecutors, McDougall's wife submitted a letter for the victim's family, offering her condolences and asking for forgiveness for her husband "in spite of the terrible pain he has caused, only because the 'real' man I have known for over 58 years is not the one (who would) have done this horrible deed."

"Our entire family is devastated by what Bill did, which we cannot explain, and nothing could ever justify Bill's conduct. I can only say that his actions must have been the product of illness ... his surgery, old age, or a combination of factors unknown to me," the letter reads in part.

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